Ukraine-Russia crisis: What to know in the escalating crisis

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — From a hastily convened meeting of the United Nations Security Council to capitals around the world, leaders have condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recognition of two pro-Russia regions in eastern Ukraine as independent and his order to send troops there.

They also warned of a global fallout from the crisis over Ukraine, which was evident Tuesday as oil prices rose, stock markets fell, and the U.K. slapped sanctions on Russian banks.

Here's a glance at the top things to know Tuesday about the conflict over Ukraine and the security crisis in Eastern Europe:

HAS RUSSIA INVADED UKRAINE?

The White House is calling Russia's troop deployments in eastern Ukraine an “invasion” after initially being hesitant to use the term. Around the world, leaders condemned Putin and prepared to hit his administration with sanctions.

“We think this is, yes, the beginning of an invasion, Russia’s latest invasion into Ukraine,” said Jon Finer, principal deputy national security adviser. He said “latest” was important. “An invasion is an invasion and that is what is under way.”

The Biden administration resisted initially calling the deployment of troops an invasion because the White House wanted to see what Russia was actually going to do, but that changed after assessing Russian troop movements, said an official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

U.K. officials, including U.K. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, noted that it's not Russia's first invasion of Ukraine. Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and has previously operated in eastern Ukraine.

“Russia has already invaded Ukraine. They did it in 2014, occupied illegally Crimea and Donbas. This is a further invasion of their sovereign territory. No...